His Gilmore Girls
by As-Long-As-I'm-Around
Summary: Rory goes to Luke after Mitchum tells her she doesn't have it. Bit OOC on Luke's behalf. Rewritten.


**A.N: Republished because I got the name wrong. So mad at myself, I'm such a Gilmore Girls fan! I knew something was wrong, but that's what happens when you start and finish a story at 2 am..**

x.

Luke Danes grumbled under his breath, surprising even himself as he came up with some colourful new words to add to his long list of...inappropriate...vocabulary.

"Caesar! Why isn't this damn thing working?" He shouted, throwing his hands up in the air as he waited for a response he was most likely not going to get.

The door to his diner started rattling and Luke, sure that it was Caesar trying to get back in after once again sneaking out, began ranting as he made his way to it.

"I should cut back your pay! Broken toasters, broken coffee machines, sneaking out like a teenager-not that I would know but I pretty much helped raise Rory-and though she was a good kid she-" He had yanked open the door, and now stopped in mid sentence as he stared upon the very girl who had starred in his speech. Although, she did not look like that girl. The girl in front of him was red faced with black streaks to the corners of her mouth. Her eyes were narrowed with the effort to hold in more tears and her shoulders shook with the effort of restraining herself. After his grim assessment, he opened the door wider behind him, and reached for her arm, gently pulling her in. She stumbled, and he wrapped his arms around her in an unusual display of affection as he caught her, kicking the door shut instead. Her head found his chest, and she let go. Luke cringed as her sobs filled the empty place, holding her tighter and running a hand up and down her back. As each second passed, Luke began to experience all sorts of emotions that he could only feel when it came to the Gilmore Girls. Confusion and concern battled with one another-concern always seemed to come out on top. But what he felt most was anger and a deep, fierce protection as he continued to hold the girl he had always seen as a daughter figure. Rory Gilmore was not a crier. When she was young, she was a clumsy kid, and often ended up with all kinds of bruises and injuries. The only bodily fluid that had come from her, was her own blood. He had seen her on the verge of tears after many fights with her mother, or her boyfriends. He had seen her go through the process of falling apart and picking herself up again. But he had never seen her openly cry as he was seeing her now, and he hoped beyond all hope that he would never have to see it again. Whoever had triggered this deep, unsettling reaction from this girl, had obviously done so under cruel and harmful intentions. Whoever had done this, did not know who loved her and protected her, and obviously did not know the wrath of Lorelai Gilmore, mother hen. They did not know what they had just unleashed, for Rory had one hell of a mother, two dads, and one hell of a grandmother and grandfather.

Rory's sobs began to quieten, until they became small sniffles. She pulled away, wiping at her nose and looking down at the ground in obvious embarrassment. Luke placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, and she glanced back up at him through wide eyes.

"Rory, what's happened?" Luke was not great at comforting people, not even those he loved deeply. But he had never put in as much effort as he was now, as he looked down upon her with patience and gentleness.

"I shouldn't have come here-I-God Luke, your shirt!" He gave a small chuckle.

"I have plenty of these shirts. Don't worry about it, kid. I'm not concerned about the shirt, I'm concerned about you." She dropped her gaze again, and Luke squeezed her shoulder in encouragement.

"I suppose you wouldn't let me...not talk about it? And not mention it to mum?" She looked up at him hopefully, while he stared down at her, shocked. Not tell her mum, but come to him? Red flags were waving, and alarms were blaring in his head.

"I might have if it weren't for the last part." She looked down again.

"Rory, you came to me. That's obviously for a reason. Now, it might have been because you thought I wouldn't force you to talk about it, and that's fine, if that's what you need. But I won't let it go without asking the who question." She flinched, and crossed her arms over her chest.

"I...It's been a horrible day. No one did anything." She wouldn't look at him.

Rory Gilmore was a terrible liar.

Luke watched her for a moment, before taking his hand off her shoulder, wrapping it around her and bringing her to a chair.

"I actually better go," She whispered, standing still before it.

"Sit." Luke pointed, and Rory sighed as she complied. He sat across from her, watching her as she began to play with her hands nervously. Finally her head shot up and she burst out,

"I just feel safe with you."

His eyebrows shot up at this.

"Did you not feel safe?" His tone was now low and dangerous.

"More like, safe in myself. And I know, mum would be best for that, right? But... I just needed a-a father figure tonight." She looked back down to her hands, locking them and unlocking them. Luke felt a smile tugging at his lips, but he forced it away.

"And why did you need that?" He may have sounded calm and almost looked it, but beneath the table his hands were forming tight fists, and he could feel the muscle in his jaw twitching. Rory looked up at him, holding his gaze as conflicted emotions spread across her face.

"Don't lie to me, Rory. Just tell me what happened. You are safe here," He both warned and reminded her.

"You know my boyfriend, Logan?" She whispered, watching him warily. Luke's brow furrowed, and he began to scowl. He didn't like where this was going. That snob of a boy had better of not hurt her. Even his rich father would not have the means to hide him from both Luke and Lorelai.

"Yes." Luke managed, and Rory smiled almost sadly.

"No, nothing like that. It's just something his father...said..." She seemed more nervous now, and Luke narrowed his eyes as he wondered why she would be scared to tell him. It was almost as if she was recalculating her reaction to this. Luke didn't care if it was huge or small to anyone except Rory. This had happened to her, and Rory was strong. She had to be, to be Lorelai Gilmore's daughter. It had impacted her hard, and that's the only thing that mattered to Luke about the subject.

"What did he do?" It was almost a whisper.

"You know, it really doesn't matter, it's been a long day, I'm not thinking-" She had began to get up, and Luke had followed her and was now standing in front of her, cutting off her escape.

"No, Rory. It does matter. So, it was his father. What did he say?"

"Do you know about that...that internship he gave me? Because he felt- well, he felt sorry for me. And he was trying to redeem himself and his family."

"Go on."

"I had my... evaluation performance today," She whispered, and she seemed unable to meet his eyes as she ploughed forwards.

"And he said... that I didn't have what it takes to be a journalist. That I wasn't...wasn't good enough." She struggled over the last sentence, as if she wasn't used to saying those words about herself, or hearing them about herself.

Which, she wasn't.

That _fucking_ asshole.

Luke stood there, unable to comprehend what she had just told him. Unable to understand that someone could tell that to Rory Gilmore. He felt the pounding anger vibrate through him and he began to breathe deeper as he tried to control it.

"He what?" Was all he could manage, all he could spit out. He needed to hear her say it again, to be sure.

She finally looked at him, her eyes-_Lorelai's_ eyes-swimming with tears.

"He told me I didn't have it."

Luke reached forwards, and enveloped her into his arms once again. He had to do something, had to channel his anger somehow. Besides, before he could go gallivanting to this man, another conversation needed to be had.

"You know it's not true, right?" He pulled away, forcing her to look up at him. It was clear, however, that she believed a man who had "known" her for only a short period of time.

"Why would you believe him?" Through his anger, Luke was confused. Rory Gilmore did not back down, and did not let one person's opinion shape her or change her, because her mother had moulded her into herself from an early point of time.

"Because it's Mitchum."

"I wouldn't care if he was president of the United States, Rory. What he said-wasn't true. He doesn't know you, or know what you can do. I'm not your father, but I'm as good as! I watched and helped you grow, and what he said also offends me."

Rory let out a watery chuckle.

"You'd hate him all the more for being president." Luke didn't rise to the bait.

"Rory. Sweetheart, I know you. You may have worked under this...Mitchum... but if he is who he is, then he's a busy man. He would not have had the to make a sound judgement on you. Those kind of people, enjoy degrading and ripping other people apart so they can keep feeling powerful, like they have something on you. You, kid, have got more then what it takes to be a journalist. All the places you applied knew it. Your mum knows it. Your grandparents do, the newspaper at Yale does, I do, everyone here does... He doesn't know you. I know you. So believe me when I say it's not true. God, I'm horrible at these speeches aren't I? This is where we need your mother. But if anything gets through to you-it's not true." He wiped the tears that had squeezed out of Rory's eyes.

"There now, no more crying. Not over this." He told her gently.

"But Luke, it's-"

"Lies. And you know what you're going to do? You're going to be the girl I know and love, and show him exactly why you're just it. Do you understand me?" Rory sniffled, and Luke gripped both her shoulders as he bent down to her level and met her eyes.

"But he...he must know! Why would he deliberately-"

"Because, sweetheart, it's what they do. I know people like him. I've seen what it does. But I am not going to let that happen to you. Okay?" He nodded at her, coaxing her to nod along with him and to let him know that she was hearing what he was saying. With a few words, Mitchum had undone the work of Lorelai Gilmore. It would perhaps take some time before it was rebuilt, but he needed both the Gilmore Girls' help with this.

He definitely needed Lorelai.

"I'm going to call your mum." He lead her back to the chair, before whipping his personal phone out of his back pocket. Rory's head shot up, her eyes wide with alarm this time.

"Can't we...does this have to be a discussion? In fact, I don't think you need me at all for this-" Rory stood up, but Luke was prepared for her, and pushed her shoulders gently downwards, forcing her to sit down.

"Why are you so scared to tell your mum?" Nervous eyes met confused ones and battled it out before Rory sighed and looked away.

"I don't want this to be a big deal. I...I don't know. I just...I'm embarrassed." She whispered the last word out, mortified. Luke slowly lowered his phone from his ear.

"Embarrassed?" He repeated, dumbstruck. Rory wouldn't meet his eyes.

"Rory, sweetheart..."

"Don't. This, I shouldn't have come-" She stood up so fast that Luke was almost unprepared. He managed to step in front of her just before she reached the door.

"You came to me. This is exactly what you need. I can promise you some time before your mum comes, so you can gather yourself. But she will be coming. You need her, Rory." Rory folded her arms across her chest almost angrily, but her face expression was of reluctant resignation.

"Okay. But, can you just wait for a bit," She whispered, turning back around and sitting down once again. Luke put his phone is back pocket again.

"Yeah, sweetheart. While we wait...do you want some coffee?"

And Rory smiled her first real smile of the night.


End file.
